SA Rare Bird News Report - 13 October 2025
Trevor Hardaker
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S O U T H E R N A F R I C A N R A R E B I R D N E W S R E P O R T | |||||||||
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This is the Southern African Rare Bird News Report issued at 18h00 on Monday, 13 October 2025.
Information has been gleaned from various websites, email groups as well as from individual observers who have passed on their sightings. This report cannot be taken as being totally comprehensive as it is based only on information made available at the time of writing. All bird sightings reported here are reported in good faith based on information as provided by the observers. Any inaccuracies are totally unintentional and the writer cannot be held liable for these.
None of the records included in this report have undergone any adjudication process with any of the subregion’s Rarities Committees, so inclusion in this report does not constitute any official confirmation of the particular record. Observers are still encouraged to make the necessary submissions accordingly.
For those who may have only joined the group recently and are interested in finding out what has been seen in the past, previous reports can be viewed at https://groups.google.com/g/sa-rarebirdnews |
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Before I get started with the actual report, this is just to let everyone know that I will be away from Wednesday morning and only get back on Monday, so Garret Skead has kindly agreed to run SARBN in my absence as I’m not sure what my connectivity is going to be like. I will share all Garret’s contact details tomorrow, so that you all have them on record for while I’m away.
Alright, on to the news and, starting in the Western Cape, Strandfontein Sewage Works continued to hold some attraction with a BLACK TERN found there on Pan P7 yesterday afternoon and still present there today, while the COLLARED PRATINCOLE was still on Pan S6 until at least Friday and, next door, at Rondevlei Nature Reserve, the GOLIATH HERON was reported again this afternoon as well. Rietvlei Wetland Reserve held on to the SQUACCO HERON which was still around the Old Friends hide yesterday and the AFRICAN JACANA which was also still around the Sunset hide yesterday while 2 LESSER STRIPED SWALLOWS were also still along the Darling Hills road at -33.482, 18.345 on Saturday. Elsewhere, other lingerers included 2 RED-NECKED PHALAROPES still at Kliphoek Salt Pans in Velddrif yesterday (and 3 individuals seen together on Saturday), at least one AUSTRALASIAN GANNET still at Bird Island in Lambert’s Bay yesterday and the 2 KNOB-BILLED DUCKS still at the Champagne Street Dams in Wellington at -33.646, 18.973 yesterday as well. A BLACK HERON was found at Paardevlei late yesterday afternoon and was seen again today at -34.089, 18.815 while another good record that surfaced earlier today was a GULL-BILLED TERN that was seen along the Berg River in Velddrif at Kliphoek Resort on Friday. Other records of interest included a WHITE-FRONTED BEE-EATER seen again on the van der Stel Pass at -34.117, 19.234 on Saturday, 2 GREATER SAND PLOVERS still at De Mond Nature Reserve on Saturday, a RED KNOT found at the Hartenbos River estuary in Mossel Bay at -34.118, 22.114 on Saturday that was still there yesterday and a BLACK-CHESTED SNAKE EAGLE reported north of Klaarstroom at -33.203, 22.542 on Friday. | |||||||||
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Black Tern at Strandfontein Sewage Works © Dominic Rollinson | Black Tern at Strandfontein Sewage Works © Thierry de Ryckel | ||||||||
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Squacco Heron at Rietvlei Wetland Reserve © Russell Botes | Squacco Heron at Rietvlei Wetland Reserve © Regard van Dyk | ||||||||
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African Jacana at Rietvlei Wetland Reserve © Russell Botes | Lesser Striped Swallow on the Darling Hills road © Dana Goldberg | ||||||||
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Gull-billed Tern at Kliphoek Resort © Anastas Schnippenkoetter | Australasian Gannet at Bird Island © Daniel Viljoen | ||||||||
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Red-necked Phalarope at Kliphoek Salt Pans © Tarry Butcher | Red-necked Phalaropes at Kliphoek Salt Pans © Iain Guthrie | ||||||||
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Knob-billed Duck in Wellington © Ian Brown | Knob-billed Duck in Wellington © Herman Nel | ||||||||
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Black Heron at Paardevlei © Daniel Correia | Black Heron at Paardevlei © Fran Delany | ||||||||
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Black Heron at Paardevlei © Hernus Langeveldt | Greater Sand Plover at De Mond Nature Reserve © Andrew Stainthorpe | ||||||||
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White-fronted Bee-eater on the van der Stel Pass © Cornelia van Zyl | White-fronted Bee-eater on the van der Stel Pass © Sarel Snyman | ||||||||
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Red Knot (left) at the Hartenbos River estuary © Rudi Minnie | Red Knot at the Hartenbos River estuary © Edward Polden | ||||||||
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Red Knot at the Hartenbos River estuary © Estelle Smalberger | Red Knot at the Hartenbos River estuary © Elmarie Brits | ||||||||
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In the Eastern Cape, there was some local excitement when an immature WHITE-BACKED VULTURE was seen over the Nelson Mandela University in Port Elizabeth at -34.009, 25.669 on Saturday and was still in the same area earlier today, while the EURASIAN OYSTERCATCHER was also still at the Kromme River estuary in St Francis Bay on Saturday. | |||||||||
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White-backed Vulture at the NMU Nature Reserve © Andre Strydom | White-backed Vulture at the NMU Nature Reserve © Deno Lombard | ||||||||
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Eurasian Oystercatcher at the Kromme River estuary © Paula Naude | |||||||||
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Moving up the coast into Kwazulu Natal, the GREEN SANDPIPER was still at Luleka Dam on Manyoni Private Game Reserve this morning, an AYRES’S HAWK EAGLE was reported flying over Kuleni Game Park in Hluhluwe on Friday and a male MACCOA DUCK was seen at Ottermere Dam near Underberg on Friday as well.
Across in Mpumalanga, the GOLDEN PIPIT was still on Timbavati Private Game Reserve at -24.380, 31.197 this morning while a PALM-NUT VULTURE was reported at Penrose farm, south of Malelane, on Saturday. | |||||||||
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Golden Pipit at Timbavati Private Game Reserve © Steve Walker | Golden Pipit at Timbavati Private Game Reserve © Martin Taylor | ||||||||
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Gauteng held on to the SLATY EGRET which continued to move between Gnu Valley farm and adjacent Walkhaven Dog Park over the weekend, and was still showing at Walkhaven late yesterday afternoon. | |||||||||
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Slaty Egret at Gnu Valley farm © Deon Pretorius | Slaty Egret at Walkhaven Dog Park © Mike Buckham | ||||||||
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Slaty Egret at Gnu Valley farm © Tristan Silver | |||||||||
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Over in Limpopo, a second GOLDEN PIPIT was found on Kapama Game Reserve at -24.405, 31.116 on Friday. Initially thought to possibly be the same individual that had just moved less than 10km from the Timbavati, it was only when confirmation came through that that bird was also still around that we realised that this was a different individual. It was eventually seen flying off in an easterly direction, and has not been seen again since then. This individual would become the 35th record of this species in Southern Africa.
Up in Namibia, the ROSS’S TURACO was still at Taranga Safari Lodge, west of Rundu, on Saturday.
And finally, in Zimbabwe, at least 1 SPUR-WINGED LAPWING was still at Lake Chivero near Harare on Thursday. | |||||||||
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Golden Pipit at Kapama Game Reserve © Kyle McGarvy | Ross’s Turaco at Taranga Safari Lodge © Donovan de Jager | ||||||||
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Thank you to all observers who have contributed their records. Please continue to send through any reports of odd birds as well as continued updates on the presence of rarities already previously reported, no matter how mundane you think they may be. Even if you think someone else has probably sent in a report, rather send the report yourself as well. The only way to improve this service and to make it as useful as possible to everyone is if it can be as comprehensive as possible.
Kind regards Trevor | |||||||||
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TREVOR HARDAKER Cape Town, South Africa |
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